Ski base

ABSTRACT

A ski base for mobile vehicles characterized by a wear rod which may be readily slip fit to and integrated with a ski body. The form of the rod is such as to provide also a towing handle of a substantial and stable nature. The improved ski and wear rod construction disclosed not only facilitates a ready application of the wear rod without the need for special fixtures but enables the placement of the wear rod by inexperienced personnel.

United States Patent 1191 McGregor Oct. 16, 3973 [54] SKI BASE FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS lnvemorl at!" McGregor, Springfield, 828,641 12/1969 Canada 280/28 [73] Assignee: Boise Cascade, Boise, Idaho Primary Examiner-Robert Song Attorney-Jerome P. Bloom [22] Filed: July 2, 1971 [21] Appl. No.: 159,361 [57] ABSTRACT A ski base for mobile vehicles characterized by a wear 152 US. c1. 280/28 red Whieh may be readily eiiP fit and integrated 51 Int. Cl B62b 17/02 with a ski hedy- The ef the red is eueh as [58] Field Of Search 280/28 16- 180/5 R Viie else a iewihg hehdie ef a substantial and Stable nature. The improved ski and wear rod construction [56] References Cited disclosed not only facilitates a ready application of the wear rod without the need for special fixtures but ena- UNITED STATES PATENTS bles the placement of the wear rod by inexperienced 3,545,560 12/1970 Fox 280/28 personneL 3,645,347 5 1971 Brant 280/28 1,108,160 8/1914 Field 280/28 12 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures Patemed Get. 16, 1973 INVENTOR JOHN C. MC GREGOR A TTOR/VE Y SKI BASE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention is directed to improvements in ski base units for mobile structures and more particularly to an improved and more versatile wear rod structure for a ski base the form and character of which is to facilitate its application and replacement and to obviate the need for application of separate and special pulling devices in connection with the ski body.

It has been found that the ski base units of the prior art are subject to considerable wear in use and that the application and replacement of their wear components is a difficult and time consuming procedure. Moreover, the prior art ski base units have required especially integrated brackets or like structures to enable a towing of the vehicle or other structure which they mount. Since the prior art ski base units have separate wear and towing devices, they do have plural units which are subject to substantial stress and wear and one or the other thereof, or both, must be frequently replaced as a consequence of use. Inherent in such construction is an initial cost and maintenance factor the reduction of which is highly desirable.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is directed to obviating the need for the connection of plural elements to accommodate base wear and to provide towing facilities and, in the process, to render the assembly of a ski base unit simple and easy to achieve. It features a one-piece wear rod and pulling medium affording economy and stability of construction.

A preferred embodiment of a ski base in accordance with the invention utilizes an improved ski design which incorporates a continuous rod-like element which may be simply fit to extend substantially the length of the undersurface of a ski body, to loop up and back over its forward end and achieve a simple biased connection thereof to the ski element. The loop is defined at the forward end of the ski element, at the upper surface thereof, to provide a rugged medium for towing the mounted structure.

It is therefore a primary object of the invention to provide improvements in ski base units for structures such as mobile vehicles which render them more efficient and satisfactory in use, adaptable to a wide variety of applications and unlikely to malfunction.

A furhter object of the invention is to provide an improved ski base of the type described incorporating a wear rod of a looped nature which additionally affords a ski base with a means for pulling thereof and the vehicle or other body which it mounts.

Another object of the invention is to provide a unique wear rod for ski base units and the like which can be resiliently slip fit to a ski element without the need for anything more than conventionally available tools, and a minimum thereof at that.

Another object of the invention is to provide improvements in ski base units which render them more quickly and easily assembled, and in a manner to lend a ski improved strength.

An additional object of the invention is to provide improvements in ski base units possessing the advantageous structural features, the inherent meritorius characteristics and the means and mode of use herein described.

With the above and other incidental objects in view as will more fully appear in the specification, the invention intended to be protected by Letters Patent consists of the features of construction, the parts and combinations thereof, and the mode of operation as hereinafter described or illustrated in the accompanying drawings, or their equivalents.

Referring to the accompanying drawings wherein is shown one but not necessarily the only form of embodiment of the invention,

FIG. 1 shows a side elevation view of the ski base unit in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the device as shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken on line 3-3 of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a view taken on line 44 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is an end view of the device of FIG. 1 on an enlarged scale;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary portion of the device of FIG. 1 shown enlarged to reveal the details thereof; and

FIG. 7 is a further fragmentary view taken on line 7-7 of FIG. 1 and shown on an enlarged scale.

Like parts are indicated by similar characters of reference throughout the several views.

As shown in the drawings, in plan view the ski base unit of the invention includes a narrow elongate platelike body 10 of ski-like form. Its rear or trailing end 12 is rearwardly tapered while the lead or forward end 14 thereof is not only tapered but curved upwardly in a relatively smooth arc form. In its upper surface 16 the body 10 has a central longitudinally extending relatively broad groove or depression 18, producing on the bottom of the body 10 a projected rib 20. This dictates that in transverse section the body 10 has at its center a generally U-shaped configuration as defined by the rib 20, and connected to the lateral upper extremities of the U" are wing segments 22. The latter project outwardly and slightly upwardly of the rib 20 and the depression 18 formed thereby in and substantially coextensive with the upper surface of the body 10.

At the rearmost end portion 12 of the body 10 the undersurface of the rib 20 is formed with a central longitudinally extended recess providing a pocket 24 adapted to nest one end of a wear rod 54, to be further described. Formed in the undersurface of the rib 20, at a position spaced forwardly of the pocket 24, immediately prior to the upwardly curved forward end 14 of the body 10, a recess forms a second pocket 28.

As seen in the drawings, mounted on the upper surface of the rear portion 12 of the body 10 is a U-shaped bracket 30. The base of the bracket 30 is flat at its center which seats on the flat base surface 31 formed by the creation of the pocket 24 in the rib 20. The bracket 30 is interconnected with the surface 31 by bolts 33 and nuts 35. The lateral extremities 32 of the base 31 are arcuately curved to be complementary to and to bear on the upwardly divergent wing segments 22 at the upper surface of the body 10. Within the boundaries of the segments 22, the lateral extremities of the bracket 30 are defined by vertically projected, parallel, and identically formed slide plate segments or ears 36. The ears 36 have transversely aligned apertures which accommodate the projection therethrough of an anchor pin 38. The expanded head portion at one end of the anchor pin 38 abuts the outermost surface of one ear 36 while at its remote end, which projects throgh the other car 36, the pin 38 is suitably apertured to accommodate a cotter pin 40. In the manner described the pin 38 is anchored transversely of and in vertically spaced relation to the upper surface of body at its rear end.

Noting FIGS. 2 and 4 of the drawings, the depression 18 formed in the upper surface of the body 10 is bridged in an area immediately above the pocket 28 by a second generally U-shaped bracket 42. Viewed in cross section, the base of the bracket 42 has a central longitudinally extended depressed portion 44 seating to the uppermost surface of the base portion of the pocket 28. The lateral extremities of the base 41 of the bracket 42 extend to bear on upper surface portions of the ski wing segments 22. At the lateral extremities of base 41, the bracket 42 has vertically projected, generally parallel, ear portions 46. The latter have aligned apertures accommodating a projection therethrough of an anchor pin 48. The latter is confined in bridging relation to the bracket 42 by means of an expanded head portion and the application of a cotter pin as in the case of the pin 38. To prevent the lateral movement or displacement of the bracket 42 in a flexing movement of the ski body 10, the forward and rear extremities of the base 41 have integrally formed turned down tabs 50 which nest within and in bearing relation to the sides of the depression 18 created longitudinally of the upper surface of the body 10 by the formation of the rib 26. As seen in the drawings, the contacting base portions of the bracket 42 and the pocket 28 are connected together by a suitable application of bolts 43 and nuts 45, in the manner as illustrated.

It will be seen that the formation of the pockets 24 and 28 and the brackets 30 and 42 are such to nest the bolt and nut elements which connect the brackets to the body 10.

The pins 38 and 48 occupy a substantially common plane, spaced slightly above the upper surface of the body 10. They are utilized to mount an upwardly bowed spring 52. One end of the spring 52 is looped over the rearmost pin 38 while the other end, which is formed as an upwardly directed hook 54, may be en gaged under and about the pin 48 between the ears of the bracket 42. Once engaged and with variable load on the spring, the hook 54 can accommodate the same by a sliding beyond and back to engagement with the pin 48.

Itis noted that in use of a pair of skis to support a ve- I hicle, such as a snowmobile, the vehicle body is connected to and mounted on the uppermost portions of springs 52 such as shown. As the snowmobile moves over ground surface, the springs will accommodate vertical displacement of the vheicle body, damping shock to the vehicle and its occupants. It will be seen from FIG. 1 that the hook extremities of the spring 52 will upon loading of the springs and relief of the load move forwardly and rearwardly of the anchor pin 48, bearing on the base of the bracket 42.

Applied to and longitudinally of the bottom of the body 10, in underlying relation to the rib 20, is a unique and quickly replaceable wear bar or rod 54. At its rearmost extremity 56, the wear rod 54 is bent or offset upwardly to follow the contour of the base surface of pocket 24 while the remainder of the wear rod runs underneath and centrally of the bottom of the rib 20. The rod 54 extends not only the full length of the rib 20, following the curved undersurface of the portion 14 of the body 10 but it extends upwardly beyond the body portion 14 in a continuing curve which reverses itself to form a short loop 57. The end of the rod 54 remote from the portion 56 is looped over and down to terminate in the recess 18 and in abutting relation to the base thereof immediately forward of the bracket 42. This last described extremity of the rod 54 is flattened to follow the base of the recess 18 for a short distance, within which distance it has an aperture 58 adapted to align with an aperture 60 in the body 10. The body 10 also has two additional apertures 62 and 64, the first of which is near the forward extremity of the body 10 in the upwardly curved portion 14 and the other of which is located immediately forward of the pocket 24. Note that three screw studs 66 are welded to project perpendicularly of the rod 54 at positions which are spaced identically with the spacing of the apertures 64, 60 and 62. Accordingly, since the wear rod 54 including its looped extremity 57 will be made of a suitable material having the capability to accommodate a degree of resilient flexing, it will be obvious that, on applying a separating bias on the loop portion 57, the rod 54 may be slid to the underside of the body 10 to respectively align the screw studs 66 with the apertures 64, 60 and 62 and be projected therethrough. With a maintenance of the described bias to spread the loop portion 57 of the wear rod at the forward end of the body 10, the reversed extremity of the loop can be caused to clear the upper surface of the body 10 on application of the wear rod from one side of the base. Once the studs 66 are in place, the biased extremity of the loop portion of the rod may be released to seat to the upper surface of the body 10 and have its aperture 58 accommodate the projection therethrough of the screw stud 66 which projects through the aperture 60. The slip fit application of the wear rod 54 is very simple, quickly achieved, and requires no ingenuity. To fixedly secure the wear rod in place one need only apply nuts 68 to the upwardly projected ends of the studs 66 which nest within the recess 18.

By means of the simply formed integral rod element described, there is achieved not only a durable and quickly replaceable stabilizing wear rod but by means of the overlooped and reversely directed forward loop extremity 57 thereof a means is provided whereby a tow line can be applied, obviating the need for a special attachment for this purpose.

In summary, a highly inexpensive and uniquely devised wear element is provided by the invention having a considerable ease of application. Moreover, the application of the wear rod requires no prior experience and there is achieved a substantial and stable ski base unit wherein a combined wear rod and towing device may be applied having special features and with a minimum of handling and with a minimum of time involvement in the process. The advantages in the art are selfevident, both from the standpoint of initial cost and maintenance.

' From the above description it will be apparent that there is thus provided a device of the character described possessing the particular features of advantage before enumerated as desirable, but which obviously is susceptible of modification in its form, proportions, detail construction and arrangement of parts without departing from the principle involved or sacrificing any of its advantages.

While in order to comply with the statute the invention has been described in language more or less specific as to structural features, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the specific features shown, but that the means and construction herein disclosed comprise but one of several modes of putting the invention into effect and the invention is therefore claimed in any of its forms or modifications within the legitimate and valid scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1 A ski base for mobile units comprising a narrow elongate ski body, means defining a glide surface at the underside of said body, and a separable wear bar extending longitudinally along said glide surface and including an extension providing a towing device on said ski base, said wear bar being in a relatively dependent relation to said underside of said body, formed to have a slip fit mount to said body, and being defined by a rod-like integral structure the respective ends of which are seated to and nested in said body, respectively to its underside and its upper surface, with an intermediate portion near a forward end of the ski body being looped over said forward end.

2. A ski base for mobile units comprising a narrow elongate ski body, means defining a glide surface at the underside of said body, and a separable wear bar extending longitudinally along said glide surface and including an extension providing a towing device on said ski base, said body having depressions formed in both its underside and its surface uppermost and said wear bar being an elongate element having spreadable portions comprised in said extension enabling a slip fit mount thereof to said body in a looping relation to one end thereof to dispose at each of its respective ends in one of said depressions.

3. A ski base for mobile units comprising a narrow elongate ski body, means defining a glide surface at the underside of said body, and a separable wear bar extending longitudinally along said glide surface and including an extension providing a towing device on said ski base, said wear bar being an integrally formed rod or bar-like element one end of which forms said extension and is reversely looped toward the remainder thereof.

4. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3 characterized by connector means formed integral with said wear bar and coupling with portions of said body to provide for a releasable anchor thereof thereto.

5. A ski base for mobile units comprising a narrow elongate ski body, means defining a glide surface at the underside of said body, and a separable wear bar extending longitudinally along said glide surface and including an extension providing a towing deivce on said ski base, said wear bar being in the form of a resilient element one end of which forms said extension and is reversely looped toward the remainder thereof, said reversely looped end and said remainder being spreadable for achieving a biased mount of said bar to said body.

6. A ski base, including a ski body formed with an upwardly curving leading end, and a rod mounted to the underside of said body to extend longitudinally thereof and having a portion in conforming and relatively projecting relation to said curved leading end, a projecting end of said portion being looped back upon said body toward the uppermost side thereof, said rod having the dual function of a wear bar and a towing device.

7. A ski base according to claim 6, wherein said rod at a location longitudinally spaced from said looped portion has a deformed portion in an interfitting relation to said ski body on the underside thereof.

8. A ski base according to claim 7, wherein said rod at a terminal of said looped portion is in an interfitting relation to said ski body on the side uppermost thereof.

9. A ski base according to claim 6, wherein said rod is made of a material having the capability of resilient flexing, the looped portion being spreadable to accommodate replacement of the rod on the ski body.

10. A ski base for mobile units comprising a narrow elongate ski body, means defining a glide surface at the underside of said body, said glide surface including a rib-like formation formed by a depression in the upper surface of said body, and a separable wear bar extending longitudinally along said glide surface and including an extension providing a towing device on said ski base, a portion of said wear bar extension being received in the depression in the upper surface of said body.

11. A ski base for mobile units comprising a narrow elongate ski body a leading end of which is curved, means forming a depending rib following the contour of said body on its underside and forming in the upper side of said'body a groove, and a separable wear bar on the underside of said body mounted to said rib in a substantially coextensive conforming relation thereto, said wear bar including an extension which is formed to loop up and over the leading end of said body and back to said body to seat in said groove and to provide a towing device on said ski base.

12. A ski base according to claim 16, wherein said bar is formed to have a slip fit mount to said ski body with a portion thereof being received in said groove.

. UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION P n 3,765,695 Dated October 16. 1973 Inven Jnhn C- McGregn'r' It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Col. 2, line 63 slide is corrected to read side last line, "throgh" is corrected to read through Col. 6, line 1, "deivce" is corrected to read device Col. 6, Claim 12, line 1 thereof, "16" is corrected to read ll Signed and sealed this 9th day of April 197b,.

(SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD M.FI.ETCHER,JR. c. MARSHALL DANE" I Attesting Officer Commissioner of Patents 1 Po-1050 (10-69) uscoMM-Dc scan-P69 F U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE I969 0-366-33L 

2. A ski base for mobile units comprising a narrow elongate ski body, means defining a glide surface at the underside of said body, and a separable wear bar extending longitudinally along said glide surface and including an extension providing a towing device on said ski base, said body having depressions formed in both its underside and its surface uppermost anD said wear bar being an elongate element having spreadable portions comprised in said extension enabling a slip fit mount thereof to said body in a looping relation to one end thereof to dispose at each of its respective ends in one of said depressions.
 3. A ski base for mobile units comprising a narrow elongate ski body, means defining a glide surface at the underside of said body, and a separable wear bar extending longitudinally along said glide surface and including an extension providing a towing device on said ski base, said wear bar being an integrally formed rod or bar-like element one end of which forms said extension and is reversely looped toward the remainder thereof.
 4. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3 characterized by connector means formed integral with said wear bar and coupling with portions of said body to provide for a releasable anchor thereof thereto.
 5. A ski base for mobile units comprising a narrow elongate ski body, means defining a glide surface at the underside of said body, and a separable wear bar extending longitudinally along said glide surface and including an extension providing a towing deivce on said ski base, said wear bar being in the form of a resilient element one end of which forms said extension and is reversely looped toward the remainder thereof, said reversely looped end and said remainder being spreadable for achieving a biased mount of said bar to said body.
 6. A ski base, including a ski body formed with an upwardly curving leading end, and a rod mounted to the underside of said body to extend longitudinally thereof and having a portion in conforming and relatively projecting relation to said curved leading end, a projecting end of said portion being looped back upon said body toward the uppermost side thereof, said rod having the dual function of a wear bar and a towing device.
 7. A ski base according to claim 6, wherein said rod at a location longitudinally spaced from said looped portion has a deformed portion in an interfitting relation to said ski body on the underside thereof.
 8. A ski base according to claim 7, wherein said rod at a terminal of said looped portion is in an interfitting relation to said ski body on the side uppermost thereof.
 9. A ski base according to claim 6, wherein said rod is made of a material having the capability of resilient flexing, the looped portion being spreadable to accommodate replacement of the rod on the ski body.
 10. A ski base for mobile units comprising a narrow elongate ski body, means defining a glide surface at the underside of said body, said glide surface including a rib-like formation formed by a depression in the upper surface of said body, and a separable wear bar extending longitudinally along said glide surface and including an extension providing a towing device on said ski base, a portion of said wear bar extension being received in the depression in the upper surface of said body.
 11. A ski base for mobile units comprising a narrow elongate ski body a leading end of which is curved, means forming a depending rib following the contour of said body on its underside and forming in the upper side of said body a groove, and a separable wear bar on the underside of said body mounted to said rib in a substantially coextensive conforming relation thereto, said wear bar including an extension which is formed to loop up and over the leading end of said body and back to said body to seat in said groove and to provide a towing device on said ski base.
 12. A ski base according to claim 16, wherein said bar is formed to have a slip fit mount to said ski body with a portion thereof being received in said groove. 